Text Based Games - Why They Offer the Most Intense PvP on the Net

You are fooling yourself if you think the most intense PvP (player vs. player) on the Net is not found in text based games. They not only offer a wide variety of options, but the number of strategies possible are endless. Each combat situation in text games are different and the outcome can always change. In graphic based games there is a general strategy to be played that dominates all others without the chance for the underdog to win. Text games provide you the opportunity to change the circumstances from one fight from the next. With the skills provided it doesn't matter what class you pick, because there is no class that can't win against another.

The decision of whether you become a great fighter or just a competent one in text based games depends on your ability to adapt and switch your strategy mid-fight. One strategy alone will not ensure that you win every time; to prepare against all odds it is a must that you enlighten yourself on what works best against each class and type of opponent. It is unwise to think that each fight in text games will be the same. You need to adapt to what is thrown at you and make changes on the fly. Normally in games people are accustomed to forming a singular strategy that works throughout. To truly be good at PvP in text games you need to work around the best traits of your class.

The intensity in text based games comes from the warfare to be waged both in one on one and group combat. By yourself the strategy involved takes a lot of creativity, but by combining your skills with that of another person's class you can come up with even more potential for mayhem. The people behind the characters you face within an online text game can be more dangerous and intelligent than any AI you have ever faced. You can inflict hundreds of different afflictions upon your opponent in text games. Through careful placement of skills you can even leave the person you are facing prone enough to have their head sliced off their shoulders.

It is important to always keep learning and perfecting your craft. Hundreds of untapped possibilities for new strategy and means of winning are available to you and your foes within text based games. When you stop actively competing and testing your mettle against others you begin to box yourself into the same way of thinking. You need to experience everything possible that you might encounter within the online text game, otherwise you will not be prepared for what is next to come. The fights you encounter will not be easy and you will not be able to use the same strategy over and over again with positive results in text based games. Just as you are supposed to adapt and learn your opponent will do the same. The fun and satisfaction involved is immeasurable if you are a person that enjoys a challenge. Just like a game of chess you have to think two steps ahead otherwise you will end up on the wrong side of the blade in text games.

For the thrill of battle and an adrenaline rush like no other you cannot go wrong with the intense PvP combat that text based games provide.

If you are interested taking a wack at at some of the best PvP on the internet, try out these great text based games from Iron Realms Entertainment.

Christopher K Davis is a text game enthusiast and currently plays games from www.IronRealms.com

Comments

I agree with a lot that this article says. However, the text games that allow heavy use of scripting sway the skill curve a bit away from strategy and knowing your abilities along with how and when to use them. And that portion then goes to how good of a script writer you are or how good of scripts do you have access to. This takes a bit away from the 'intensity' of pvp on text games. Though, I still agree they have a higher variety of outcomes and strategies to be used. It just seems that the IRE games have a lot of automated defense and the variety that brings is how well you can foil your opponents script rather than how you can skillfully overcome them. Obviously all my opinion.

Totally agree. I spent many hours in Achaea trying to become a competent PvPer, but /refused/ point-blank to use scripting. Needless to say, the odds were very neatly stacked against me and I got my ass handed to me on a regular basis. That said, I've never been a fan of fighting so I just left it alone and got back to what really does it for me in IR games - roleplay, the /awesome/ player-led economy and the drool-inducing ton of customisation.

allowing scripting to be used, making them legal, creates more equality among the players, as everyone who wants to compete badly enough should be able to get or create the script and with all combatants having equal access to scripts, more skillful players will win. With the complexity of the combat system in IR games the strategic skills will most likely be always necessary at higher levels.

I hate to play games where "bots, scripts" are banned, not because I miss them myself, but because there were always hundreds of cheaters anyway getting an advantage over those who choose to stay withing the rules. No amount of reporting, anti-bot systems, bust-squads were ever able to make any visible difference.

What I would consider unfair are very expensive combat artefacts. Here, many very skillful players might not be able to go to the top only because they simply do not have thousands of dollars to invest in the game. But I suppose that's a different issue altogether.

Combat by itself is hard to muster. Just because you have a curing system doesn't automatically mean that you'll own in combat. Curing is only part of what you need, and like the article says, you'll need to explore the limits of your class and different strategies that'll work with your race/statpack chosen to eliminate your opponents.

Another thing is: don't let failure stop you from improving in your combat skills. Great fighters used to suck real bad too, until they catch the hang of it. Feel free to approach those who can PK well for some tips and make use of the arena frequently. And lastly, remember in the end that this is just a game, and try not to let your anger get away from you if you lose (and punch a hole into the screen of your laptop or something, ha).

Very well said. I'd say making your own system / customizing a "mainstream" one to tailor your own needs / quirks, can give you a slight edge - You learn more about combat, there is some value in not curing like most others. (though some systems let you change curing queues etc now, some things stay the same)

Out of somethuing simple, something complicated can arise. 'Simple', however, isn't a good word to describe the system that Achaeans start off with. There are multiple ways for each class to fight, no one of which is definitively better. What works against one person may not against the next, regardless of class.

Out of something complex, complexity arises. The massive variety of skills, abilities, afflictions and cures can be daunting, but remember. Everyone starts out with the same problem - how to be good at fighting other players - and everyone responds differently. Those who choose to get better by watching their opponents and working things out, trying new stratagies and so on. Others simply choose a different route - I choose bashing over PK, and roleplaying over both. All such choices are equally valid.

unfortunately cheats don't work in these games, nor will they give you the upperhand. If you find yourself dying a lot to a variety of opponents, chances are you aren't thinking outside the box, and experimenting with new strategies. In Imperian, there are a lot of basic ways to fight, but if you ever want to stand a chance against some of the more experienced players, it's skill not artifacts that will make the difference (Don't get me wrong, we all love artifacts). Don't fight with the same strategy always, switch it up and keep your opponent guessing, that way you'll always have the upper hand because there will always be tricks up your sleeve.

For me, Cardi's comment really nails what makes text-based PvP far better than graphical. Nothing frustrates me more in a graphical MMO than the fact that a person with shinies will win EVERY time. IR PvP has always nicely balanced this; yes, having better equipment and skills will be a huge help in the right hands, but it'll never win the fight for you if you don't have the skill to back it up. In real life, if I bought you a state-of-the-art sniper rifle and you were a rubbish shot, you still wouldn't be able to shoot well with it - this for me has always been the ethos of combat in IR games. To an extent, even your level isn't going to win it for you (although it does give you a bigger toybox to choose from).

Scripting does annoy me, but I honestly think that in text-based PvP, the best (wo)man wins!

Due to the level of complexity present in the combat systems of text RPGs, players are required to become very familiar with the available skills and combinations to be effective. There is no "easy fix" and there is no "quick way to win" most fights with practiced combatants. Although this can make it difficult to break into the realm, there are frequently experienced fighters willing to help new or less-practiced ones learn the ropes. All you need to do is ask!

I am the PVP monster out of all of my friends. I enjoy a rather large group of gaming friends, and they all look at me when the word or thought of pvp comes up, and there is no pvp that gets my adrenaline Really physically pumping more than pvp in an IRE game, nothing comes close, not starcraft, warcraft, halo, counter strike...pvp, IRE style, thats the only way to go.